A Man Who Was Cheated on by a Bad Man and Had Everything Taken From Him Decides to Get Revenge by Starting a New Life - Chapter 11

Episode 11: String Puppet

Four weeks have passed since the incident.

Since May 13th, the investigation into the murder case of the female university student has shown no visible progress and remains at a standstill. It is still unclear whether there is an actual perpetrator or if the suspect, Mr. Onoda, who admitted to the charge of corpse abandonment, acted alone.

As for me, in the past few weeks, perhaps because Honjo is not around, my work has been progressing smoothly, and my performance has topped among the new employees. In addition to physical transformation, I have also started paying attention to fashion. In my previous life, I used to wear the same patterned suit over and over, but now it’s different. I dress in tailored suits, and I care about skincare and hairstyles. Appearance is not just a cover; it’s a tool to show who I am as a person. People always start by looking at the cover of a book, which is similar to judging by appearance. Even if a good story is packed inside, it might not be opened if the cover doesn’t appeal. I feel that my efforts in self-improvement have slightly changed my sales performance.

On Saturday, I attended the farewell ceremony for Sawa Honjo.

The media also crowded the entrance of the funeral hall, creating a tense atmosphere.

I stood at the end of one of the several lines waiting to offer incense.

From this line, I could see the family’s faces while waiting.

A stylish father with glasses and a beard, and a young, beautiful mother who looked like she was in her thirties. And Honjo, holding a portrait of her younger sister, sitting there as if her soul had been sucked out, looking vacant.

Seeing her like that, I thought she wouldn’t come back to the company, but…

“Hey there! Takuya Honjo, I’m back!”

“Honjo-kun, are you sure everything at home is alright?”

“Totally fine, boss. Hehehe.”

Is he really okay?

While talking to the boss, Honjo’s neck and eyes were moving busily. What’s scary is that the direction of his neck and eyes don’t match. This doesn’t seem okay…

In the morning, it seemed like he was managing to handle his work.

But one moment he was laughing, and a few seconds later he looked sad, then suddenly expressionless. He didn’t seem normal at all.

“Sales Department 3, Koda speaking—Yes? What? Okay, understood.”

The police…

They’re at the lobby reception now, asking me to come down.

“Boss, actually…”

I whispered the situation to the boss and went back to my desk to get my employee ID from the drawer.

“What’s up, Koda-kun?”

Honjo.

He had somehow slipped behind me and was peering at my face.

“Oh, uh, just some errands.”

“Okay, take care!”

It’s eerie.

He grinned and saw me off until I reached the hallway.

I felt a sting around my neck.

When I casually looked back, a chill ran down my spine.

Honjo, with a demonic expression, only his mouth smiling…

I couldn’t help but look away.

I quickly headed to the elevator hall and went down to the first floor.

“Sorry to trouble you.”

A man in his early thirties, dressed in a plain white shirt, navy chinos, and brown leather loafers, blending in perfectly with the office casual attire.

“This is me.”

I didn’t realize he was a plainclothes detective until he showed me his police badge.

“Do you need something from me?”

“Come on, don’t play dumb. You know what I’m talking about.”

“Actually, I have no idea.”

“This. [The Association of Victims of the Honjo Siblings].”

He showed me the site opened on a tablet PC. The fact that the password was cracked means the investigation has reached the site operator.

I never thought it would escalate to a murder case, so I used my home PC’s email address. From there, they must have traced the IP address, contacted the ISP… the Internet Service Provider, and obtained user information.

“Did she steal your brother?”

“No, I just looked out of curiosity.”

I explained to the detective about Honjo’s bad habits and lied that I stumbled upon that page while searching. I lied about hating Honjo’s brother to the site operator to get the password.

“And then, you proposed to feature the siblings on the site…”

It’s scary how he knows everything. But.

“No, that’s a separate issue. It was purely a corporate PR idea. Honjo was chosen in the planning meeting.”

“Quite a clever tactic. But don’t worry, I’m not here to arrest you.”

According to the detective, they still haven’t found the direct perpetrator.

They suspect it’s the operator of that site, who used an email address issued from a highly anonymous site, making it difficult to identify the culprit.

“Why do you think that?”

“That’s under investigation, so I can’t tell you. More importantly…”

The detective lowered his voice even more.

“Koda-san. Are you being manipulated?”